If you are preparing to appear for the LSAT(Law School Admission Test), then you probably know of its nuances and the test’s structure. LSAT prep tutors emphasize the importance of self-study. But that does not necessarily mean that the students are left to fend on their own.
The LSAT is taken by law-school aspirants to try and secure a place in one of the top law schools in the country. The questions revolve mainly around comprehension, logical and verbal reasoning competency. These are required to see if the candidate is suitable for the advanced curriculum set by prestigious law schools.
While working with your private LSAT tutor, it is essential to draft a plan to help you understand how each section works and what the respective timelines are for solving said section’s questions. Along with these objectives, students are expected to be vigilant about the best sources and material available to enhance their learning experience. But how does a prospective law student ensure the best of their performance? Does it take too long to prepare for the LSAT? What are the expected learning goals set by LSAT tutors? In this blog, we try deciphering the necessary skills to get into your dream law school.
How much time do you have?
Each of these sections, namely, Reading comprehension, Analytical reasoning, Logical reasoning, Un-scored variable section, and Essay section, are expected to be covered in about three and half hours. How does a student practice enough to give their best in these three hours?
The answer to that question could lie in the amount of prep time you allot to yourself. Experts believe that a student who has been preparing for more than four months is likely to have a more effortless experience of scoring decently than a student who has prepared in a few weeks.
Your personalized study schedule is your companion. The best LSAT tutors would help students seamlessly draft a learning plan that includes time for reviewing both subjects and advanced strategies. Your time management skills will need to be sharpened during the course. Else, the pace of solving questions can affect your performance.
How well do you know the test?
Another important question you must ask yourself is how much you know about each LSAT section. For instance, The Reading Comprehension section consists of twenty-seven questions to be answered within thirty-five minutes. This section has four areas within itself, of which three sections carry long passages. Each passage would entail about five to eight questions that are to be answered after reading the passage thoroughly.
The Analytical Reasoning section consists of twenty-five questions to be answered within thirty-five minutes. The section consists of questions that are ‘game’-like. You are expected to match the options given to you or put them to arrive at the solution. The Logical Reasoning sections have two sub-sections with about twenty-five questions and about thirty-five minutes for each section. The student is expected to answer these questions with logic and interpret the abstract text to score points. The section intends to test your ability to interpret readings that can appear from various perspectives. The Unscored Variable section comprises questions that are not scored and are to evaluate the collective understanding of test-takers. This section intends to be an experimental test as the student will not necessarily know if these questions are part of the Unscored Variable section or not.
The final section is the Writing or Essay section for which the candidate is allocated about thirty-five minutes to complete. The nature of problem statements in this section is to assess your solving mentality and reasoning capabilities. This is not included in LSAT’s scoring scheme and is simply forwarded to admission offices for their use. The final score on the LSAT is dependent on the number of correct answers and falls in the range of 120-180. This is based on 101 questions spanning across all sections. There is no negative marking for wrong answers, which is an added advantage. A decent score above 160 can get you into the top law schools in the country.
Based on what we just discussed, any LSAT taker can create a picture of what he or she is walking into. It is almost important for successful LSAT test-takers to make sure all of these details influence their learning strategy. Reducing your test anxiety must be a priority. Reading too much into student reviews of how tests went can trigger unwanted confusion, so it is recommended to read more about the way the LSAT works from official sources, rather than students.
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Identify your strengths and weaknesses.
The more your practice, the higher your confidence will be. Along with an impending improvement in confidence, you can also steadily identify your strengths and weaknesses with each practice test. Feedback is necessary for this improvement. Without the right feedback, any test prep will seem incomplete.
Your LSAT tutor will use a systematic approach when it comes to feedback on a student’s weaknesses. It is important to hone in on each weakness until it is no longer a problem for the student. The more time you spend on it, the better you will be at managing each weakness.
The best way to prepare for the reasoning abilities section is to get into the habit of reading multiple sources on current events or other relevant topics. Practicing on past questions can also be helpful, but careful consideration must be given when practicing analytical thinking methods.
As a closing note, test preparation strategies can be stressful if dealt with at the last minute. Students who want to attend highly ranked schools must start preparing a few months before their test date. LSAT tutors are experts at helping you improve on aptitude-related performance, but it takes a disciplined study plan to help secure a place in a prestigious law school. Miles Smart Tutoring offers stellar LSAT test prep courses for law school aspirants looking for practical training and improved scores.